M+ Museum
Projects
Shopping the museum of the future
Embracing local subtleties inside Asia’s landmark cultural venue
In Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District, M+ is a pioneering museum of contemporary visual culture. Step inside and you’ll find 33 galleries of international art – including architecture, video games, and animation. And with over 270,000 visitors in its first month, it’s quickly joining the league of the world’s biggest modern art institutions.
The name comes from “a museum and more”. And true to that, retail is central to M+. In Hong Kong, stores have to be exceptional to stand out – there’s high competition for consumers’ attention, and high expectations for every shopping experience. So, we designed the retail offer to be a destination in its own right.
Inspiration to take home
The M+ building is a love letter to the region. We stayed in tune with the architecture and the brand throughout the spaces. Making the transition between exhibition and shop, observer and customer, feel seamless. Some museum shops act like a blank canvas, but not here. We looked outside for what makes Hong Kong buzz. And we found local materials, silhouettes, and objects – plus a colour palette borrowed from a much-loved Chinese soap opera. At 9000 ft2, the core M+ shop is a hive of inspiration and activity. Two pavilions anchor the space: the first – based on traditional Pai Dong market stalls – hosts a revolving range of products, collaborations and pop ups. The second pavilion is a central space for self-discovery and learning with masterclasses and artist talks. And our influence doesn’t end there. From merchandising strategy to gift wrapping, we set the scene for M+ visitors to delight in their discoveries, get tactile with materials and take-home treasured finds.
The design of the two shops is unique and absolutely beautiful. They have, like the architecture of the museum itself, really looked at our locations in Hong Kong and responded to vernacular aspects of the street, popular culture and visual culture.
Suhanya Raffel
